Fear Creation Theories
Many blogs, canons, and verses have their own interpretation of where the Fears came from. This page makes an attempt to list all of the theories that occur in the mythos. Omnipotence Theory The Omnipotence Theory is simple. It states the Fears have always existed. They may change forms or not yet be tangible, but they were always there. Their "births" are merely them making their first appearance after deciding on a form or finally meeting the requirments needed to manifest in a physical form. The Tulpa Effect The Tulpa Effect is an idea, originating in Tibetan mythology, which holds that an individual thinking hard enough about a single idea-concept can create something. This is expanded upon within the Fear Mythos to include the idea that collective thought can create beings out of idea-concepts. As an example, think of what Peter Pan says about fairies. Every time someone stops believing in fairies, one dies. This suggests that fairies' existence is based upon people's belief in them. Thus, if no one believed in fairies, they would cease to exist. In a similar sense, some stories assume that the Fears exist because people believe in them. Some stories use this to justify the existence of the Compulsion as well, as it could help the Fears find more people to believe in them and keep their existence in check. However, the Fears do not need a large number of people to believe in them, but will continue to exist so long as someone believes in them. This theory, if used in a Fear Mythos work, assumes that the protagonist could potentially create a being to use against the Fears. However, this would require making someone truly believe in such a being, which would be extremely difficult. Another way someone could possibly use the Tulpa Effect to their advantage is shifting their mental view of the Fears so they are no longer invincible, creating a scenario where the Fears can be defeated. Tulpas, as mentioned above, originate from Tibetan Buddhism, although there is a Western equivalent known as "thoughtform." Within Tibetan Buddhism, Tulpas are bodies created from one person's mind, usually as a form of extra body, which the person then uses to travel to spiritual realms. Fear Embodiment Theory The Fear Embodiment Theory says that the Fears are created through collective fear of a particular thing or concept. However, unlike the Tulpa Effect, the Fear Embodiment Theory does not require anyone to have a concept or awareness of an embodiment of that fear. Thus, through this theory, a Fear could exist without anyone knowing it exists, so long as the concept it embodies is feared by a significant amount of people. For example, the Quiet has likely always existed because the fear of vanishing into nothingness and/or nameless obscurity is something which is a deeply rooted fear within humans. The Runner Verse takes this theory a step further, claiming that Fears are only as powerful as how feared their represented subject is, and it is possible for a Fear to lose their status as a Fear, creating Fallen Fears. Meme Complex See alliterator's explanation here. Eldritch Ascension Theory |160px]] Eldritch Ascension Theory claims that every Fear came from something decidedly more mortal. Stories that adhere to Eldritch Ascension might give every Fear a human backstory before something causes them to ascend into Godlike beings, which are often expected in Fearblogs. Some stories may give a majority of the Fears a mortal backstory, but leave others open to interpretation. This theory can be traced back to Hidden in the Trees, where The Wooden Girl took new vessels in human bodies. This was later codified by The Harlequin in OH GOD THE RAPTURE IS BURNING, a former Proxy of the Slender Man who believed she was in love with him when in reality he was abusing and manipulating her. One day, she caught on to what was really happening, so The Ecclesiarchway granted her eldritch powers, allowing her to confront her abuser only to slip back into the cycle of abuse, which she represents as a Fear. In some stories, the events that lead to a human's ascension to Godhood correlates to what they will represent as a Fear. For example, The Four Roses Verse interpretation of The Constant Wanderer was subjected to a cycle of death and regeneration that unintentionally transformed them into a Fear. As such, the Constant Wanderer is said to represent repetition, routine, and leading a meaningless existence. The Theory can be traced outside of the mythos to such things as superhero comics, where every superhero and supervillain have an often-tragic backstory, or the Roman poem Metamorphoses where Salmacis rapes Hermaphroditus and thus forces him to merge with her, becoming a higher being by proxy. Artificial Creation Theory The Artificial Creation Theory is the theory that someone, or something, created the Fears. The beings or group responsible for this tends to vary from verse to verse, due to varying interpretations of certain beings. In the Somniverse, The Fears were created by Jack of All to be a more active force to enact his plans so he could, for the most part, lay back and enjoy. Each one was created within a year or two from twisted mortal desires (e.g. A man wanted to see his dead lover again so he made him the afterlife). Despite only being created recently, they were then made to have existed retroactively since the dawn of time. They fear Jack because they know him as their creator and a being above themselves, but they fear nothing else. They serve him somewhat unwillingly and their own desires and decisions work far better than any commands Jack could give them. Break-Off Theory The Break-Off Theory is the idea that the Fears were originally part of one being, but then split off. This "original being" can be an all powerful being that once existed, or other Fears. For example: In the Runner Verse, The Eye was originally one of Transgression's eyes. Also, some stories speculate that The Burning Bride and The Brute may have been one being at some point. A variant of this theory is that the Fears are all extensions of one being, similar to how Dying Man Shards are extension of The Dying Man or how some Servants seem to be extensions of their masters. Category:Theories